23andMe to go public via SPAC with backing from Richard Branson in $3.5 billion deal

• 23andMe is going public by merging with Richard Branson's SPAC, VG Acquisition Corp.
• The deal will value the consumer genetics and research company at around $3.5 billion.
• 23andMe CEO and co-founder Anne Wojcicki and Virgin Group's Richard Branson will each invest $25 million in the deal.
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23andMe, the consumer genetics company that popularized at home DNA test kits, is going public via merger with a SPAC.

The company will merge with Richard Branson's VG Acquisition Corp. in a deal that gives 23andMe an enterprise value of $3.5 billion. Anne Wojcicki, CEO and co-founder of the company, and Richard Branson will each invest $25 million in the deal.

The SPAC merger will raise a total of $250 million in proceeds for the company, with institutional investors Fidelity Management & Research Company, Altimeter Capital, Casdin Capital, and Foresite Capital pitching in on the deal.

Once the deal closes, 23andMe will have $900 million in cash, and current shareholders of the company will own 81% of the combined company. 23andMe had just recently raised $82.5 million in December.

23andMe will utilize the proceeds raised from its SPAC merger to fund additional investment in its consumer health and therapeutics business. When a consumer uses 23andMe's test kit, they have the option to participate in genetic research.

23andMe utilizes this genetic data from the test kits to discover genetic insights that could be helpful in developing new drugs and therapeutics. According to the company, there are more than 30 therapeutics underway that focus on oncology, respiratory, cardiovascular diseases, and more.

Shares of VG Acquisition Corp. surged as much as 18% in Thursday trades.

The deal is expected to close in the second quarter, and the company will trade under the ticker symbol "ME" on the New York Stock Exchange.

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